A Gloucestershire woman is one of two women to be sentenced following incidents related to prohibited items at a men's prison across the border in Wiltshire.

Amy Batchford, aged 35, of Brockworth, Gloucester, pleaded guilty to bringing a category A article (cannabis) into HM Prison Erlestoke, which is for category C prisoners.

Batchford was sentenced on Friday, December 21 at Salisbury Crown Court to 24 months in prison, suspended for 24 months, and ordered to pay a £140 victim surcharge.

On Friday, November 9, officers were called to the prison, near Devizes, after staff became suspicious of Batchford's behaviour.

She was searched and found to be in possession of cannabis.

Home Office guide to prison categories

Category A

These are high security prisons. They house male prisoners who, if they were to escape, pose the most threat to the public, the police or national security.

Category B

These prisons are either local or training prisons.

Local prisons house prisoners that are taken directly from court in the local area (sentenced or on remand), and training prisons hold long-term and high-security prisoners.

Category C

These prisons are training and resettlement prisons; most prisoners are located in a category C. They provide prisoners with the opportunity to develop their own skills so they can find work and resettle back into the community on release.

Category D - open prisons

These prisons have minimal security and allow eligible prisoners to spend most of their day away from the prison on licence to carry out work, education or for other resettlement purposes. Open prisons only house prisoners that have been risk-assessed and deemed suitable for open conditions.

The second woman, Nicole Tomlinson, 27, of Tongham, Surrey, pleaded guilty to attempting to take category A (steroids) and category B (sim cards) articles into a prison and was sentenced at Salisbury Crown Court the same day as Batchford.

HM Prison Erlestoke (Image: Google)

For the category A items, she was given an 18 month prison sentence, suspended for 24 months and ordered to pay a £140 victim surcharge. For the category B item, she was given a six month prison sentence suspended for 24 months.

Sgt Pete Foster said: "Tomlinson was arrested following a proactive stop by officers where she produced a bottle of steroids.

"The sim card was located during a search when she was in custody."

About HMP Erlestoke

What the Home Office says about the prison

HMP Erlestoke is a Category C establishment holding adult male sentenced offenders and from July 2018 a small cohort of Young Adults.

The prison is built on the former grounds of Erlestoke Manor House and has over the past few years expanded in both offender numbers and intervention programmes

The establishments’ focus is firmly fixed on reducing reoffending and preventing future victims of crime by preparing offenders for their release through accredited intervention programmes, skill and vocational based training and education, in a pro social environment.

The Establishments’ Commitment Statement is as follows:

HMP Erlestoke will strive to provide a safe, decent and secure environment for offenders, staff and visitors.

We will engage with offenders and work with our partner agencies, the voluntary sector and the wider community to offer support and a range of opportunities to those in custody. Our aim is to protect the public and to prevent future victims by focusing offenders on rehabilitation.

Sgt Foster added: "I am pleased that the courts have seen fit to issue custodial sentences, albeit they have been suspended in this instance.

"It is within everyone's interests to have a safe prison, and taking illegal and prohibited items into prison undermines this and causes huge issues for those working there.

Read More

"We will continue to work in partnership with HMP Erlestoke to combat this issue, which includes both responding to concerns raised by the prison and proactive stops outside of the prison based on intelligence.

"In addition we regularly patrol the area to prevent throw-overs, and would encourage anyone who sees anything suspicious to report it to us via 101, or 999 if a crime is in progress."